6th February 2010 - The familiar
landmarks of Benoni were all still there to welcome
us!
Above: Benoni's famous mine dump
Right: The Bunny Park
Above: Lakeside Mall
Our first day and our first
meeting with Cameron, the newest arrival in the family,
with his proud parents, great-grandmother...
...and not forgetting grandmother!
7th February 2010 - our second day.
We were up early for the drive to the
Vaal Dam to visit Linda, Jimmy and Kathleen
Above: An old painting of
the chapel at Sappersrust which Linda
had salvaged from the family archives.
It brought back some good childhood memories.
Above: Oupa with Slater
Below: Christian, Slater and Kelly
Above: Ryder with his new glasses
Jimmy's braai skills, under
close scrutiny by Ann and Geoff
Above: 360 degree panorama
showing the three houses on the property and the Vaal Dam
Slater, kept everyone entertained
with his antics (see video below)
Waterskiiing in the heat
of the day... Bruce had gone for a nap!
Above: Jimmy giving us an impressive
display of his radio flying skills
One of the highlights of
our visit was a fast ride across the dam to the dam wall
and marina.
Thanks to recent heavy and prolonged rains, the dam was
at full capacity.
Above: Looking back to the
house as we departed for our ride
Above: The dam wall, with
one of its sluice gates open
Below: The marina, which Jimmy told us was the largest inland
marina in the southern hemisphere
Returning back to the house,
there was an amazing African sunset
Kathleen ensured that we
didn't have to get our feet wet!
8th February 2010
The next morning, we enjoyed
a relaxed breakfast
Above: Sheba, now getting on a bit and
none too agile
Above: The new arrival on the block,
whose name we can't recall!
Local animal life. A watching
and waiting game...
Above and below: The tranquil view from
the house
After a most enjoyable time,
it was back to Benoni, where Freddie rekindled a few personal
memories
Above: Having a drink in the sunshine
Left: revisiting Northmead Square
That evening, we visited
Kelly, Christian, Ryder and Slater at their home
9th February 2010
Above: Geoff enjoying his breakfast at Jackie's home,
where we were staying
10th February 2010
A meal out at a Greek restaurant
with Marc, Clare, Cameron, Jackie and Yvonne.
Geoff's prawn dish was delicious, he said.
11th February 2010
Bruce caught up with his high school friends, Cilla and
Karen. It was their first meeting in more than thirty
five years,
so there was a lot to catch up on. Geoff prepared the
lunch so that none of them needed to miss a word of the
conversation!
12th February 2010
Geoff is always fascinated by all the "Stop"
signs at
intersections, especially since there is so little traffic!
Jackie's new business venture
is designing, making and selling all manner of baby goods.
Good luck with the new shop, Jackie!
No visit to Benoni would
be complete without one of Jen & Des's braais... Freddie
was definitely up for it too!
13th February 2010
Another visit from Kelly,
Slater and Ryder. Here, Slater is bullying Oupa!
Sadly, it was time to move on.
It had been a lovely visit.
Above: The Shongololo Lounge at O.R. Tambo airport
Our Qantas flight to Melbourne (via Sydney) left on Saturday
13th February in the evening.
